Fishing lure retriever

ABSTRACT

The fish lure retriever is constructed from a flat washer having a slot extending from the outer edge to the inner aperture through which the line on a snagged lure can be passed. A retrieving line along with a plurality of chain sections are attached to the body so that when the body is slid down on the fish line to the lure the weight will produce a downward pull thereon or produce an outward prying force or a chain may engage the barbs of the hooks on the lure so that it can be released upon the pulling of the retrieving line.

United States Patent Mauck [54] FISHING LURE RETRIEVER [7 2] lnventor:Robert J. Mauck, Pinconning, Mich.

[22] Filed: Nov. 23, 1970 [21] App]. No.: 91,824

[52] US. Cl ..43/ 17.2 [51] Int. Cl. ..A01k 97/00 [58] Field of Search..43/5, 17.2; 223/99 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS2,948,077 8/1960 Karpes ..43/17.2 2,676,430 4/1954 Richard ..43/ 17.23,364,611 1/1968 Downing ..43/ 17.2 2,950,558 8/1960 Karpes ..43/l7.21,851,370 3/1932 Munger ..43/17.2

Pinkham et a1 ..223/99 Greenleaf ..43/l7 .2 X

Pn'mary Examiner-Melvin D. Rein AttorneyHarness, Dickey & PierceABSTRACT The fish lure retriever is constructed from a flat washerhaving a slot extending from the outer edge to the inner aperturethrough which the line on a snagged lure can be passed. A retrievingline along with a plurality of chain sections are attached to the bodyso that when the body is slid down on the fish line to the lure theweight will produce a downward pull thereon or produce an outward pryingforce or a chain may engage the barbs of the hooks on the lure so thatit can be released upon the pulling of the retrieving line.

7Claims,5DrawingFigures FISHING LURE RETRIEVER BACKGROUND OF THEINVENTION A search of the art disclosed the following pertinent US. Pat.Nos. 2,676,430; 2,793,457 and 3,012,355 which disclose the use of chainsections on a body having a retrieving line attached thereto over whichthe lure retriever of the present invention has features which arebelieved to be patentable.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The invention pertains to a fish lure retrievermade from a flat washerlike plate having a central substantiallycircular aperture and an extension on one side containing an aperturefor a strong retrieving line. A slot is provided between the outer edgeof the body and the inner edge of the slot, one side of which is cutaway to form a guide for a line which readily passes through the slotinto the central aperture. The sides of the slot are extended into theaperture by inwardly projecting portions which prevent the line frompassing outward through the slot. The body is provided with a pluralityof apertures between the central aperture and the outer edge throughwhich cotter pins extend having sections of chains supported in the eyesthereof from one side of the body.

The projecting ends of the cotter pins may be secured by clamping nutsand the like but are herein illustrated as having the legs bent apartand flattened against the face of the body on the side opposite to thatfrom which the chain sections extend. The material employed ispreferably rustproof and is of such weight that when the body is slidover the line it will engage the lure and provide a pry thereto or adownward pull which could release the snagged hook. The retriever can bepulled up and down by the retrieving line to cause one or more links ofthe chains to engage the snagged hook or other hooks of the lure so thatit may be retrieved upon pulling on the retrieving line.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a perspective view with aportion of the chain sections broken away of the fish lure retrievingdevice of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a view of the structure illustrated in FIG. 1 with a fish lureline disposed in the slot by which it is advanced into the aperture atthe center of the device;

FIG. 3 is a view of the structure illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 after thedevice has been lowered into a position to engage the lure, the chainsections of which are in position to snag the hooks thereof;

FIG. 4 is an edge view of the structure illustrated in FIG. 3, and

FIG. 5 is an enlarged sectional view of the structure illustrated inFIG. 1, taken on the line 55 thereof.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The fish lure retrieving device11 has a flat body 12 of substantially washerlike form and of circularconfiguration having a central aperture 13 which is also ofsubstantially circular form. The body 12 is extended at 14 and providedwith an aperture 15 by which a retrieving line 16 is tied or otherwisesecured, the line having substantial strength preferably of between 100and 200 pounds test. A slot 17 extends from the outer edge of the body12 to within the aperture 13, a portion of the body on one side of theslot being cut away at 18 to provide a shoulder 19. The fish line 21will move against the shoulder and be directed into the aperture 13 whenguided theretoward by the edge 18. The metal adjacent to the slot 17 isextended at 22 within the aperture 13 so as to prevent the line fromreentering the slot and moving outwardly thereof. The line is parallelto the vertical slot and readily passes therethrough.

A plurality of spaced apertures 23 are provided through the body betweenthe aperture 13 and outside edge through which cotter pins 24 extendafter the eyes 25 thereof have the end link 26 of a length of chain 27secured therein. Legs 28 of the cotter pins extend through the aperture23 and are pried apart and flattened against the face of the body 12, asclearly illustrated in FIG. 5. Clamping nuts or other elements may beemployed for locking the extended legs 28 to the plate although theflattening of the legs was found to be the cheapest and most positiveway of retaining the cotter pins on the body.

The'body and other parts of the retrieving device is made from arustproof metal such as stainless steel, aluminum alloy, monel metal andthe like which has the proper weight to apply a load to the lure whenmoved into engagement therewith. The body 12 is preferably stamped,forged or otherwise formed from a sheet of material with the slot 17 sawcut or otherwise provided through the body.

When a lure is snagged on an obstacle beneath the water, a pull on thelure line will sometimes set the hook more positively in the obstacleand may eventually break the line which usually will not withstand aheavy pull. In any event, when the lure is snagged, the retriever ispassed over the fish line 21 as illustrated in FIG. 2. To apply theretriever to the fishing line 21, the body 12 preferably is held by thehandle portion 14 with the slot 17 disposed at one side of the bodyfacing the line and with the chains 27 dangling downwardly therefrom.This position of the retriever permits the fishing line 21 to be guidedinto the slot 17 by a simple wrist movement even under adverseconditions frequently encountered such as strong currents, wave actionon the boat, gusty winds, jerky movement of the fishing line, etc., itis simply necessary to swing the body 12 generally in an are so as tolay the shoulder 19 on the line 21. The shoulder then guides the line oninto the slot 17 for entry into the central aperture 13. If necessarythe line can be pulled slightly forward at this time to keep it taut andagainst the shoulder 19 and to overcome any unsteadiness on the part ofthe boat or the user. Manifestly, the drag on the lower end of the linedue to the snagged lure and the tip of the fishing rod will hold theline 21 reasonably steady during this operation.

After the fishing line 21 has entered the central aperture 13, the body12 is released and permitted to slide downwardly on the line by payingout the retrieving cord 16. As this action takes place, and indeed untilthe retriever is removed from the fishing line 21, the body 12 isprevented from inadvertently coming off the line by the latter cominginto register with the inner end of the slot 17 by one or the other ofthe two protuberances 22. In general, the body 12 may turn and moveabout somewhat as it slides downwardly toward the lure but theprotuberances 22 are quite effective in preventing it from turning orpositioning itself so that the line 21 can enter the slot 17 and releasethe retriever.

If a barb of the lure is snagged on a solid object such as a log or arock as shown in FIG. 3, the initial impact of the body 12 against thelure may be sufficient to dislodge the barb and to free the lure. On theother hand, if the barb is deeply embedded or badly tangled in weeds,for example, it usually cannot be disengaged and released simply bybumping the retriever against it. Under these conditions, it isnecessary to jiggle the retriever up and down on the fishing line 21immediately above the snagged lure so that the chains 27 dangling fromthe underside of the body 12 flop about and become entangled in one orperhaps several of the hooks on the lure. As soon as the personmanipulating the retrieving cord 16 senses that the chains 27 havecaught in the hooks he can exert a strong pull on the line 16 and tearthe lure loose without danger of breaking the fishing line 21 or oflosing the lure. Both the grappling chains 27 and the retrieving cord 16preferably are sufficiently strong to straighten out the snagged hook,if necessary, but usually the lure will come free without damage.Sometimes, if the object on which the lure is snagged is not too heavyas in the case of weeds or a small branch, for example, both the lureand the object on which it is snagged may be brought to the surfacewhere the lure can be physically disengaged or disentangled withoutdamage to it or any of the hooks. It will be readily apparent, however,that even though a hook is bent out of shape in disengaging the lurefrom the snag, it can easily be bent back into shape and the barbsharpened for reuse.

It is a special feature of the retriever that many lures can beretrieved by the device of this invention even though all of the hooksshould be so badly entangled or otherwise snagged that one or the otherof the chains 27 cannot be engaged with the hooks. Due to the shape ofthe body 12 and particularly of the central aperture 13, jiggling of thebody on the line 21 above the lure in the manner described aboveeventually causes the body to settle onto the tapered nose portion ofthe lure. This is true particularly of spoon shaped lures, for example.When this occurs, the lure is guided by one or the other of the twoprotuberances 22 in such a way that the body settles onto the lure withone edge of the latter engaged at the base of one protuberance and theopposite edge thereof wedged against the side of the aperture oppositethe protuberance. When the body 12 settles onto the lure in this manner,a tug on the line 16 causes the body to cant or cock on the lure andthus bind against it in such a way that the body will not pull off thelure when the cord 16 is given a strong tug. Once the retriever body 12has been attached to the lure in this manner, the line 16 can be pulledwith enough force to break the lure loose from most snags.

I claim:

1. In a lure retriever, a stamped washerlike body having a slot from theouter edge to an inner central aperture, an aperture through the bodyadjacent to the outer edge for a retrieving line, said body having aplurality of apertures between the inner and outer edges, and means ineach of said plurality of apertures for supporting chain sections fromone face of the body, the supporting means for the chain sections beingcotter pins having an eye which supports the end link of the chainsections from one side of the body, and means securing the extendinglegs of the cotter pin on the other side of the body.

2. In a lure retriever as recited in claim 1, wherein said body issubstantially circular having an extended portion on one side containingsaid aperture for the retrieving line.

3. in a lure retriever as recited in claim 2, wherein the outer portionof the washerlike body at one side of the slot is deleted to form aguide edge for the line on the snagged lure which guides it against ashoulder and into the slot.

4. In a lure retriever as recited in claim 3, wherein said slot isdisposed normal to the faces of the body to permit the line to readilypass therethrough.

5. In a lure retriever as recited in claim 4, wherein 'a centralaperture is circular except for the portions each side of the slot whichextends inwardly thereinto for preventing the line from reentering theslot.

6. In a lure retriever as recited in claim 1, wherein the securing meansfor the legs are the end portions which are flattened against theadjacent face of the body.

7. A retriever for snagged lures comprising a flat washer-like bodyhaving a central aperture stamped therein;

a plurality of chains attached to one face of said body and adapted todangle downwardly therefrom,

said body having a portion at one side thereof forming a handle,

and said handle portion being provided with means for attaching aretrieving cord thereto, said body also provided with a through slotextending substantially at right angles to said handle portion from theperiphery thereof to said central aperture, said body at the side of theslot remote from said handle portion extending radially outwardly beyondthe portion of the body at the opposite side of slot and defining ashoulder adapted to engage and retain a fishing line and to guide theline into the slot for entry into said central aperture, and

protuberances on said body within said aperture at opposite sides ofsaid through slot serving the double function of retaining the fishingline within said central aperture and of guiding or positioning the bodyonto a snagged lure so that a tug on said retrieving cord cocks the bodyon the lure with a binding action,

whereby to wedge the body and the lure together and to permit retrievalof the lure.

l 10 I! i

1. In a lure retriever, a stamped washerlike body having a slot from theouter edge to an inner central aperture, an aperture through the bodyadjacent to the outer edge for a retrieving line, said body having aplurality of apertures between the inner and outer edges, and means ineach of said plurality of apertures for supporting chain sections fromone face of the body, the supporting means for the chain sections beingcotter pins having an eye which supports the end link of the chainsections from one side of the body, and means securing the extendinglegs of the cotter pin on the other side of the body.
 2. In a lureretriever as recited in claim 1, wherein said body is substantiallycircular having an extended portion on one side containing said aperturefor the retrieving line.
 3. In a lure retriever as recited in claim 2,wherein the outer portion of the washerlike body at one side of the slotis deleted to form a guide edge for the line on the snagged lure whichguides it against a shoulder and into the slot.
 4. In a lure retrieveras recited in claim 3, wherein said slot is disposed normal to the facesof the body to permit the line to readily pass therethrough.
 5. In alure retriever as recited in claim 4, wherein a central aperture iscircular except for the portions each side of the slot which exteNdsinwardly thereinto for preventing the line from reentering the slot. 6.In a lure retriever as recited in claim 1, wherein the securing meansfor the legs are the end portions which are flattened against theadjacent face of the body.
 7. A retriever for snagged lures comprising aflat washer-like body having a central aperture stamped therein; aplurality of chains attached to one face of said body and adapted todangle downwardly therefrom, said body having a portion at one sidethereof forming a handle, and said handle portion being provided withmeans for attaching a retrieving cord thereto, said body also providedwith a through slot extending substantially at right angles to saidhandle portion from the periphery thereof to said central aperture, saidbody at the side of the slot remote from said handle portion extendingradially outwardly beyond the portion of the body at the opposite sideof slot and defining a shoulder adapted to engage and retain a fishingline and to guide the line into the slot for entry into said centralaperture, and protuberances on said body within said aperture atopposite sides of said through slot serving the double function ofretaining the fishing line within said central aperture and of guidingor positioning the body onto a snagged lure so that a tug on saidretrieving cord cocks the body on the lure with a binding action,whereby to wedge the body and the lure together and to permit retrievalof the lure.